Technical information: 202) 691-6378 USDL 03-551
http://www.bls.gov/cps/
For release: 10:00 A.M. EDT
Media contact: 691-5902 Friday, October 17, 2003
USUAL WEEKLY EARNINGS OF WAGE AND SALARY WORKERS: THIRD QUARTER 2003
Median weekly earnings of the nation's 101.4 million full-time wage and
salary workers were $618 in the third quarter of 2003, the Bureau of Labor
Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. This was 2.5 per-
cent higher than a year earlier, compared with a gain of 2.2 percent in the
Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) over the same period.
Data on usual earnings are collected as part of the Current Population
Survey, a nationwide sample survey of households in which respondents are
asked, among other things, how much each wage and salary worker usually
earns. (See the Explanatory Note.) Highlights from the third-quarter data
are:
--Women who usually worked full time had median earnings of $550 per week,
or 79.8 percent of the $689 median for men. The female-to-male earnings
ratios were higher among Hispanics (89.4 percent) and blacks (84.2 percent)
than among whites (80.4 percent) or Asians (77.7 percent). (See table 1.)
--Median earnings for black men working at full-time jobs were $568 per
week, 80.2 percent of the median for white men ($708). The difference was
less among women, as black women's median earnings ($478) were 84.0 percent
of those for their white counterparts ($569). Overall, median earnings of
Hispanics who worked full time ($444) were lower than those of blacks
($509), whites ($633), and Asians ($692). (See table 1.)
--Among men, those age 45 to 54 ($839) had the highest median weekly
earnings. Among women, earnings also were highest for those 45 to 54 years
old ($619). (See table 2.)
--Among the major occupational groups, persons employed full time in
managerial, professional, and related occupations had the highest median
weekly earnings--$1,056 for men and $755 for women. Men and women in
service jobs earned the least. (See table 3.)
--Full-time workers age 25 and over without a high school diploma had
median weekly earnings of $397, compared with $563 for high school graduates
(no college) and $958 for college graduates holding at least a bachelor's
degree. Among college graduates with advanced degrees (professional or
master's degree and above), the highest-earning 10 percent of male workers
made $2,495 or more per week, compared with $1,812 or more for their female
counterparts. (See table 4.)
Explanatory Note
The estimates in this release were obtained from the Current
Population Survey (CPS), which provides the basic information on the labor
force, employment, and unemployment. The survey is conducted monthly for
the Bureau of Labor Statistics by the U.S. Census Bureau from a scienti-
fically selected national sample of about 60,000 households, with coverage
in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. The earnings data are
collected from one-quarter of the CPS monthly sample and are limited to
wages and salaries. The data, therefore, exclude self-employment income.
Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired
individuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-691-5200; TDD message referral
phone number: 1-800-877-8339.
Reliability
Statistics based on the CPS are subject to both sampling and nonsam-
pling error. When a sample, rather than the entire population, is surveyed,
there is a chance that the sample estimates may differ from the "true"
population values they represent. The exact difference, or sampling error,
varies depending on the particular sample selected, and this variability is
measured by the standard error of the estimate. There is about a 90-percent
chance, or level of confidence, that an estimate based on a sample will
differ by no more than 1.6 standard errors from the "true" population value
because of sampling error. BLS analyses are generally conducted at the
90-percent level of confidence.
The CPS data also are affected by nonsampling error. Nonsampling error
can occur for many reasons, including the failure to sample a segment of the
population, inability to obtain information for all respondents in
the sample, inability or unwillingness of respondents to provide correct
information, and errors made in the collection or processing of the data.
For a full discussion of the reliability of data from the CPS and
information on estimating standard errors, see the "Explanatory Notes and
Estimates of Error" section of Employment and Earnings.
Definitions
The principal definitions used in connection with the earnings series
are described briefly below.
Usual weekly earnings. Data represent earnings before taxes and other
deductions and include any overtime pay, commissions, or tips usually
received (at the main job in the case of multiple jobholders.) Prior to
1994, respondents were asked how much they usually earned per week. Since
January 1994, respondents have been asked to identify the easiest way for
them to report earnings (hourly, weekly, biweekly, twice monthly, monthly,
annually, other) and how much they usually earn in the reported time
period. Earnings reported on a basis other than weekly are converted to a
weekly equivalent. The term "usual" is as perceived by the respondent. If
the respondent asks for a definition of usual, interviewers are instructed
to define the term as more than half the weeks worked during the past 4 or
5 months.
Medians (and other quantiles) of weekly earnings. The median (or upper
limit of the second quartile) is the amount which divides a given earnings
distribution into two equal groups, one having earnings above the median
and the other having earnings below the median. Ten percent of a given
distribution have earnings below the upper limit of the first decile (90
percent have higher earnings); 25 percent have earnings below the upper
limit of the first quartile (75 percent have higher earnings); 75 percent
have earnings below the upper limit of the third quartile (25 percent have
higher earnings); and 90 percent have earnings below the upper limit of the
ninth decile (10 percent have higher earnings).
- 2 -
The estimating procedure places each reported or calculated weekly
earnings value into $50-wide intervals which are centered around multiples
of $50. The actual value is estimated through the linear interpolation of
the interval in which the quantile boundary lies.
Over-the-year changes in the medians (and other quantile boundaries)
for specific groups may not necessarily be consistent with the movements
estimated for the overall quantile boundary. The most common reasons for
this possible anomaly are: (1) There could be a change in the relative
weights of the subgroups. For example, the medians of both 16-to-24 year
olds and those 25 years and over may rise; but if the lower-earning 16-to-
24 group accounts for a greatly increased share of the total, the overall
median could actually fall. (2) There could be a large change in the shape
of the distribution of reported earnings, particularly near a quantile
boundary. This could be caused by survey observations that are clustered
at rounded values, e.g., $250, $300, $400. An estimate lying in a $50-wide
centered interval containing such a cluster or "spike" tends to change more
slowly than one in other intervals.
Wage and salary workers. Workers who receive wages, salaries,
commissions, tips, payment in kind, or piece rates. The group includes
employees in both the private and public sectors but, for the purposes of
the earnings series, excludes all self-employed persons, regardless of
whether or not their businesses are incorporated.
Full-time workers. Workers who usually work 35 hours or more per week
at their sole or principal job.
Part-time workers. Workers who usually work fewer than 35 hours per
week at their sole or principal job.
Constant dollars. The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers
(CPI-U) is used to convert current dollars to constant (1982) dollars.
Hispanic or Latino ethnicity. This refers to persons who identified
themselves in the enumeration process as being Spanish, Hispanic, or Latino.
Persons whose ethnicity is identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of any
race and, therefore, are classified by ethnicity as well as by race.
Table 1. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by selected characteristics, quarterly averages,
not seasonally adjusted
Number of workers Median weekly earnings
(in thousands)
Characteristic In current dollars In constant (1982)
dollars
III III
2002 2003
III III III III
2002 2003 2002 2003
SEX AND AGE
Total, 16 years and over.................................. 101,459 101,372 $603 $618 $322 $323
Men, 16 years and over................................. 57,402 57,175 671 689 358 360
16 to 24 years....................................... 7,030 6,746 376 396 201 207
25 years and over.................................... 50,373 50,429 729 742 389 388
Women, 16 years and over............................... 44,056 44,197 527 550 282 288
16 to 24 years....................................... 5,267 5,018 360 366 192 191
25 years and over.................................... 38,789 39,180 570 585 305 306
RACE, HISPANIC OR LATINO ETHNICITY, AND SEX
White(1)............................................... 83,444 82,828 620 633 331 331
Men.................................................. 48,281 47,815 694 708 371 370
Women................................................ 35,162 35,012 548 569 293 297
Black or African American(1)........................... 12,288 11,984 484 509 259 266
Men.................................................. 5,901 5,654 511 568 273 297
Women................................................ 6,387 6,330 457 478 244 250
Asian(1)............................................... 4,723 4,382 665 692 355 362
Men.................................................. 2,661 2,500 757 762 404 399
Women................................................ 2,062 1,882 576 592 308 310
Hispanic or Latino..................................... 13,256 13,805 420 444 224 232
Men.................................................. 8,256 8,761 435 463 232 242
Women................................................ 4,999 5,044 401 414 214 216
1 Beginning in 2003, persons who selected this race group only; persons who selected more than one race group only are not
included. Prior to 2003, persons who reported more than one race group were included in the group they indentified as the
main race.
NOTE: Estimates for the above race groups (white, black or African American, and Asian) do not sum to totals because
data are not presented for all races. In addition, persons whose ethnicity is identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of
any race and, therefore, are classified by ethnicity as well as by race. Beginning in January 2003, data reflect revised
population controls used in the household survey.
Table 2. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by age, race, Hispanic or Latino ethnicity, and
sex, third quarter 2003 averages, not seasonally adjusted
Total Men Women
Age, race, and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity Number Number Number
of Median of Median of Median
workers weekly workers weekly workers weekly
(in earnings (in earnings (in earnings
thousands) thousands) thousands)
TOTAL
16 years and over......................................... 101,372 $618 57,175 $689 44,197 $550
16 to 24 years.......................................... 11,764 384 6,746 396 5,018 366
16 to 19 years........................................ 2,040 315 1,191 324 849 304
20 to 24 years........................................ 9,724 401 5,555 413 4,169 384
25 years and over....................................... 89,608 662 50,429 742 39,180 585
25 to 54 years........................................ 76,458 659 43,222 735 33,237 586
25 to 34 years...................................... 25,082 594 14,513 630 10,569 547
35 to 44 years...................................... 26,889 683 15,458 769 11,431 586
45 to 54 years...................................... 24,487 729 13,251 839 11,236 619
55 years and over..................................... 13,150 684 7,207 786 5,943 583
55 to 64 years...................................... 11,489 708 6,212 816 5,277 599
65 years and over................................... 1,661 526 995 620 666 415
White(1)
16 years and over......................................... 82,828 633 47,815 708 35,012 569
16 to 24 years.......................................... 9,800 383 5,726 397 4,074 363
25 years and over....................................... 73,028 684 42,090 766 30,938 599
25 to 54 years........................................ 61,860 681 35,891 758 25,969 600
55 years and over..................................... 11,168 704 6,199 821 4,969 590
Black or African American(1)
16 years and over......................................... 11,984 509 5,654 568 6,330 478
16 to 24 years.......................................... 1,270 381 637 389 633 373
25 years and over....................................... 10,714 529 5,018 592 5,696 497
25 to 54 years........................................ 9,454 528 4,410 591 5,043 495
55 years and over..................................... 1,260 537 607 595 653 505
Asian(1)
16 years and over......................................... 4,382 692 2,500 762 1,882 592
16 to 24 years.......................................... 399 422 231 403 168 498
25 years and over....................................... 3,984 728 2,269 807 1,715 607
25 to 54 years........................................ 3,474 731 1,988 831 1,486 599
55 years and over..................................... 510 700 281 735 228 685
Hispanic or Latino
16 years and over......................................... 13,805 $444 8,761 $463 5,044 $414
16 to 24 years.......................................... 2,098 357 1,386 358 712 355
25 years and over....................................... 11,708 477 7,376 493 4,332 431
25 to 54 years........................................ 10,747 477 6,830 490 3,917 438
55 years and over..................................... 961 477 546 522 415 386
1 Beginning in 2003, persons who selected this race group only; persons who selected more than one race group only are not
included. Prior to 2003, persons who reported more than one race group were included in the group they indentified as the
main race.
NOTE: Estimates for the above race groups (white, black or African American, and Asian) do not sum to totals because
data are not presented for all races. In addition, persons whose ethnicity is identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of
any race and, therefore, are classified by ethnicity as well as by race. Beginning in January 2003, data reflect revised
population controls used in the household survey.
Table 3. Median usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by occupation and sex, quarterly averages,
not seasonally adjusted
Number of workers Median weekly earnings
(in thousands)
Occupation and sex
III III III III
2002 2003 2002 2003
TOTAL
Managerial, professional, and related occupations........ 35,350 35,663 $857 $883
Management, business, and financial operations
occupations............................................... 14,317 14,388 925 951
Professional and related occupations................... 21,034 21,276 816 840
Service occupations...................................... 13,959 13,996 391 400
Sales and office occupations............................. 25,567 25,199 530 544
Sales and related occupations.......................... 10,079 10,003 591 598
Office and administrative support occupations.......... 15,488 15,196 512 524
Natural resources, construction, and maintenance
occupations............................................... 10,824 11,344 591 600
Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations............. 838 783 338 398
Construction and extraction occupations................ 6,084 6,378 583 586
Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations...... 3,903 4,182 660 679
Production, transportation, and material moving
occupations............................................... 15,759 15,170 508 527
Production occupations................................. 9,109 8,790 503 526
Transportation and material moving occupations......... 6,650 6,380 516 529
Men
Managerial, professional, and related occupations........ 17,742 17,799 1,015 1,056
Management, business, and financial operations
occupations............................................... 7,984 8,070 1,067 1,112
Professional and related occupations................... 9,758 9,728 973 1,018
Service occupations...................................... 7,252 7,112 423 451
Sales and office occupations............................. 9,880 9,583 652 647
Sales and related occupations.......................... 5,848 5,653 732 728
Office and administrative support occupations.......... 4,032 3,930 577 571
Natural resources, construction, and maintenance
occupations............................................... 10,275 10,870 599 604
Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations............. 628 648 369 408
Construction and extraction occupations................ 5,921 6,224 586 587
Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations...... 3,725 3,998 663 681
Production, transportation, and material moving
occupations............................................... 12,254 11,811 553 579
Production occupations................................. 6,414 6,210 563 595
Transportation and material moving occupations......... 5,840 5,601 542 549
Women
Managerial, professional, and related occupations........ 17,608 17,865 739 755
Management, business, and financial operations
occupations............................................... 6,332 6,317 768 808
Professional and related occupations................... 11,276 11,547 723 731
Service occupations...................................... 6,706 6,883 356 361
Sales and office occupations............................. 15,687 15,616 483 501
Sales and related occupations.......................... 4,231 4,350 426 428
Office and administrative support occupations.......... 11,456 11,266 498 516
Natural resources, construction, and maintenance
occupations............................................... 549 474 397 488
Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations............. 209 135 306 327
Construction and extraction occupations................ 162 154 478 510
Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations...... 178 185 573 639
Production, transportation, and material moving
occupations............................................... 3,505 3,359 397 414
Production occupations................................. 2,695 2,579 401 400
Transportation and material moving occupations......... 810 780 382 477
NOTE: Occupations reflect the introduction of the 2002 Census occupational classification system derived from the
2000 Standard Occupational Classification system into the Current Population Survey. Beginning in January 2003, data
reflect revised population controls used in the household survey.
Table 4. Quartiles and selected deciles of usual weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by selected
characteristics, third quarter 2003 averages, not seasonally adjusted
Number Upper limit of:
of
Characteristic workers
(in First First Second Third Ninth
thousands) decile quartile quartile quartile decile
(median)
SEX, RACE, AND HISPANIC OR LATINO ETHNICITY
Total, 16 years and over.................................. 101,372 $300 $411 $618 $950 $1,405
Men..................................................... 57,175 321 453 689 1,073 1,562
Women................................................... 44,197 282 377 550 800 1,159
White(1)................................................ 82,828 305 420 633 975 1,444
Men................................................... 47,815 326 466 708 1,101 1,598
Women................................................. 35,012 286 384 569 817 1,184
Black or African American(1)............................ 11,984 276 360 509 736 1,073
Men................................................... 5,654 293 382 568 769 1,152
Women................................................. 6,330 259 338 478 701 992
Asian(1)................................................ 4,382 299 443 692 1,073 1,638
Men................................................... 2,500 320 489 762 1,253 1,863
Women................................................. 1,882 263 402 592 857 1,246
Hispanic or Latino...................................... 13,805 264 327 444 654 991
Men................................................... 8,761 278 344 463 681 1,074
Women................................................. 5,044 244 308 414 612 880
EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT
Total, 25 years and over................................ 89,608 319 449 662 1,001 1,469
Less than a high school diploma....................... 8,575 241 303 397 518 731
High school graduates, no college..................... 27,060 302 403 563 777 1,074
Some college or associate degree...................... 24,521 337 460 634 914 1,258
Bachelor's degree and higher.......................... 29,452 478 671 958 1,410 1,914
Bachelor's degree only.............................. 19,480 444 624 892 1,303 1,861
Advanced degree..................................... 9,972 593 775 1,132 1,587 2,201
Men, 25 years and over................................ 50,429 356 500 742 1,137 1,636
Less than a high school diploma..................... 5,758 269 334 427 577 820
High school graduates, no college................... 15,508 344 467 632 884 1,175
Some college or associate degree.................... 12,770 382 527 736 1,055 1,421
Bachelor's degree and higher........................ 16,394 524 746 1,120 1,597 2,195
Bachelor's degree only............................ 10,730 494 694 1,023 1,499 2,020
Advanced degree................................... 5,663 630 874 1,273 1,773 2,495
Women, 25 years and over.............................. 39,180 293 400 585 841 1,207
Less than a high school diploma..................... 2,817 213 268 327 423 532
High school graduates, no college................... 11,553 276 350 480 639 839
Some college or associate degree.................... 11,751 309 407 559 759 1,011
Bachelor's degree and higher........................ 13,058 433 611 830 1,162 1,572
Bachelor's degree only............................ 8,750 404 577 766 1,057 1,475
Advanced degree................................... 4,308 549 728 969 1,348 1,812
1 Beginning in 2003, persons who selected this race group only; persons who selected more than one race group only are not
included. Prior to 2003, persons who reported more than one race group were included in the group they indentified as the
main race.
NOTE: Ten percent of all full-time wage and salary workers earn less than the upper limit of the first decile; 25
percent earn less than the upper limit of the first quartile; 50 percent earn less than the upper limit of the second
quartile, or median; 75 percent earn less than the upper limit of the third quartile; and 90 percent earn less than the
upper limit of the ninth decile. Estimates for the above race groups (white, black or African American, and Asian) do not
sum to totals because data are not presented for all races. In addition, persons whose ethnicity is identified as Hispanic
or Latino may be of any race and, therefore, are classified by ethnicity as well as by race. Beginning in January 2003, data
reflect revised population controls used in the household survey.
Table 5. Median usual weekly earnings of part-time wage and salary workers by selected characteristics, quarterly
averages, not seasonally adjusted
Number of workers Median weekly earnings
(in thousands)
Characteristic
III III III III
2002 2003 2002 2003
SEX AND AGE
Total, 16 years and over.................................. 20,850 20,907 $194 $199
Men, 16 years and over................................. 6,597 6,428 189 189
16 to 24 years....................................... 3,285 3,295 158 153
25 years and over.................................... 3,312 3,134 231 241
Women, 16 years and over............................... 14,253 14,478 197 205
16 to 24 years....................................... 4,376 4,457 154 153
25 years and over.................................... 9,877 10,022 226 235
RACE, HISPANIC OR LATINO ETHNICITY, AND SEX
White(1)............................................... 17,747 17,637 196 200
Men.................................................. 5,473 5,369 190 190
Women................................................ 12,274 12,268 198 205
Black or African American(1)........................... 1,901 1,954 183 187
Men.................................................. 666 651 186 178
Women................................................ 1,234 1,302 181 191
Asian(1)............................................... 978 807 199 227
Men.................................................. 351 219 187 173
Women................................................ 628 588 207 251
Hispanic or Latino..................................... 2,256 2,365 186 195
Men.................................................. 841 830 205 200
Women................................................ 1,415 1,535 176 193
1 Beginning in 2003, persons who selected this race group only; persons who selected more than one race group only are
not included. Prior to 2003, persons who reported more than one race group were included in the group they indentified as
the main race.
NOTE: Estimates for the above race groups (white, black or African American, and Asian) do not sum to totals because
data are not presented for all races. In addition, persons whose ethnicity is identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of
any race and, therefore, are classified by ethnicity as well as by race. Beginning in January 2003, data reflect revised
population controls used in the household survey.